Behind the shattered looking glass
by silkdreamweaver
Summary: The life Alice left behind is no more. Her younger sister Edith knows this best. A second wonderland has appeared, this one made by her younger sister. A world more bloody than Alice's Wonderland. With Edith's mind falling in tatters, what is Alice to do to save her especially when she sister plans to kill her. Can the roleholders protect Alice and help her save her sister's mind?
1. Chapter 1

**AN: My first fan fic. Hope you enjoy.**

**words in**_ italics _**are thoughts** **and **words that are **_bold and italic _**are from an unknown vioce in her head. (unknown for now.)

**Disclaimer: I don't own Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice. Just My OC's and this plot.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 1: Escape from reality. Enter Wonderland.<strong>

_It's not fair. Why does very thing bad that can happen, happen to me. _

A small little girl with short black hair and green eyes, who is around the age of 8 years, sits on a bench inside a police station, waiting for any of her relatives to come get her.

_First mom pasted away then sis and now dad too. Why did they have to leave me? Why? Why must I be left alone?_

"_**But my dear, what about your other sister, Alice?"**_

_That cold-hearted person is not my sister. If it wasn't for her dad would still be here. If she didn't run away, he would never have spent so many nights out looking for her leaving me alone in the house. He wouldn't have left this morning to go looking for her again. If he didn't go he would have come home and not die in some accident._

"_**What happened to him exactly?" **_

_They wouldn't tell me._ _Probably cause I'm a child and they don't think I can handle it. I have already dealt with two, so why not tell me and let me handle one more._

**Flashback: 4 hours ago.**

"Daddy, where are you going?" asked the little girl.

"I'm going to look for Alice," replied the girl's father.

"But why do you have too," whined the little girl, "We're better off without her."

"How can you say that? Alice is your sister. The only sister you have left," the father said, surprised.

"If she truly was my sister she would have cried when mom died, not act as if she never existed. If she was my sister, she would not have run away when Lorina died and leave us behind. That person is not my sister."

"Edith, I know you are upset with her, but that does not mean you should hate her. I'm sure she mourns your mother's and Lorina's passing, as much as you do. Their deaths have been hard on us all. Look I have to get going now, you sure you don't want to come with me, I hate to leave you alone."

"Yes dad, I'm sure," the girl replied looking away from her dad.

"Very well," the father replied dejectedly, "I'll be back in two hours, no more. Keep an eye on the house for me."

"Okay. Promise to come back safe?"

"Of course. Goodbye Edith," said the dad as he walked out the front door.

"Bye dad."

**Three hours later:**

_Knock, Knock._

"That must be daddy. He's late. He said two hours, it's been three."

As Edith opens the door, she is surprised to see, instead two uniformed police officers. She noticed one was very short compared to the other.

"Hello little girl, is your mother home?" asked the short one.

"No. No one is home, but me right now, though my dad should be back any minute now." replied Edith, confusion on her face as she wonder why the police where here.

"So there is no one else here? You're by yourself?" asked the taller officer in surprise.

Edith stared at him, wondering why he sounded a bit nervous.

"I will say again, I am the only one home. Why, did some thing happen?" The officers exchanged glances, but remained quit, which frightened Edith. "Did something happen to my dad?" she asked in a panicked voice.

At this both officers looked at each other before the short one sighed and turned to Edith.

"I'm sorry to tell you this, but your father was caught in a...situtation, sort a like an accident." The officer paused before continuing. "He didn't make it."

At this Edith felt as though what remained of her life shattered like glass.

"W-What. T-That can't be true." she stuttered as her body slumped against the doorframe, the only thing keeping her from falling to the ground.

"I'm sorry, but it's true. Do you mind if we wait here for your mother?" asked one of the officers.

She couldn't tell who said this through her tears, but she didn't care. Nothing seemed to matter anymore.

"There is no one else. I'm the only one left . The rest of my family is dead."

"You poor thing. I'm so sorry," said the tall one.

"Can you come with us. We can't leave a small girl home alone. We'll contact some of your relatives and see if any can watch over you for now," said the short officer as he stretched out his hand for her to take.

"Ok." replied Edith in a small voice.

The entire time Edith was with them, she never stopped muttering

"He promised. He promised."

**Present:**

_He promised to come back home, he promised._

"_**But he didn't come back."**_

_Why must my life be so cruel? What caused it to be this way? What has my family ever done to disserve this?_

"_**You have done nothing. Life just chooses to be cruel."**_

_But why must it be? Why can't we be happy in our lives? Why must we suffer?_

"_**Because that is the way life works. Everyone suffers at one point or another. Some more than others. There is nothing that can be done to stop it.**_

_Then why can't I just disappear from this world and end my suffering. I know happy endings do not exist, but it is not fair that one person is made to suffer so much. If only I could leave this life._

"_**Ah but you can. Do you truly want to leave this world and everyone in it behind?"**_

_How?_

"_**You just have to come with me, but you must choose now. Do you want to leave or stay? This is the only time you can choose."**_

_What if Alice comes looking for me? Shouldn't I stay here and wait for her?_

"_**Wait, so you do care for you sister? I thought you hated her and blamed her for this."**_

_Ha. What am I thinking? She is not my sister. If she was going to come back, she would have long ago. Your right, she is to blame for all this. There is nothing for me here. I don't want to stay any longer. You can take me with you now._

"_**Excellent choice." **_

Edith felt a pair of arms wrap around her and pull her backwards. All of a sudden she felt herself falling downwards and the world around her disappeared. As she fell she closed her eyes.

_Good-bye cruel world._

No one noticed the little girl's disappearance. The only sign left behind was a single bloodstained black rose with a playing card attached. On it was a picture of a knight in white armor covered in blood stains with a smile on his face.

As Edith finally felt herself stop falling and she touched ground, she felt the arms around her let go. As she opened her eyes she heard a voice whisper in her ear.

"_**Welcome to your Wonderland." **_

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><p><strong>What do you think. Do you like? Please R&amp;R.<strong>

**I will try to update as soon as I can. (I may also rewrite this chapter later)**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Sorry for the late update. Went out of state but i am back. Chapter is a little short, sorry.**

**Disclaimer: I don't Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 2: A Dream?<strong>

"Welcome to your Wonderland."

As Edith opened her eyes, she couldn't help but gasp. She was standing on a stone balcony over looking a vast city and beyond it was a strange colorful forest. There were trees of every color imaginable. In it was what appeared to be a mansion in a clearing. Far off in the distance, she saw a castle that had a gigantic tower in the middle that carried a giant red heart on top. It was also covered in some strange red veins. To the left she could see what appeared to be an ocean and on the coast a giant theater like building. To her right the sky looked dimmer and all she could see was a faint online of some large building and nothing else.

When Edith looked down she notice that she was standing in what appeared to be the tallest tower of a white colored castle. Every building she saw was colored white. The castle was built on a large hill making the castle rise up in rings surrounded by an inner wall. Around the base on the hill was a large village enclosed by another wall. The most noticeable feature that Edith was able to see was the large clearing that looked like an oversized park. From the looks of it, the clearing curved around the back of the castle taking up half of the area inside the outer wall.

The entire landscape was breath taking. Edith found herself so entranced with the view that she did not notice the pair of hands on her shoulder.

"Do you like the view?"

From the sound of the voice she could tell it was a guy.

"Yes. It's amazing." responded Edith, not tearing her eyes away from the view.

"Then it seems you will not have any trouble staying here." said the stranger.

"I'm not staying here." replied Edith.

"Why won't you be?" he asked.

"Because this could all be a dream and I could have just passed out at the station. I could wake up any moment now." She replied in a sad tone.

"That is were you are wrong. This place is very real." he said.

"How do I know you are telling the truth and this place is indeed real?" she asked.

"How about you take a tour with me and see how different this world is from when you first created it. I will prove that this world is real without a doubt. You just have to trust me."

"Alright," she sighed ",but first I have a question. Who are you?"

"Aw how could you not remember me. Why don't you turn around and find out my dear." he replied.

At this Edith let out a sigh as she finally tore her gaze away from the view and turned around to meet her mysterious stranger. She was surprised when she found herself facing a Knight in white armor.

He wore a helmet that only covered the top part of his face, covering his eyes behind an small sight slit. He wore a smile on his face and carried a sword. He looked like he could be close to 20 years old. After staring at him for a minute, she still could not recognize him.

"I still don't remember you. Are you sure I know you?" she asked him.

"Of course. After all you created me. I was made to serve the one who wields me after all and duels with jabberwocky daily," he said with a smile. At this recognition flashed through Edith's eyes as she finally remembered who this man was.

"Vorpal."

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><p><strong>AN: What did you think? Please Review.<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Sorry for the long update. I decide to split this chapter since it was taking me so long to update. Also the next couple chapters will be introducing more of Edith's Wonderland and all her friends.**

**Disclaimer: I only own my OC's and the plot.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 3: Introductions into madness.<strong>

"Vorpal!" gasped Edith.

"The one and only, at your service. It's good to see that you still remember me." Vorpal said with a grin on his face. Edith found herself surprise that her favorite creation was here with her. The reason Vorpal was Edith's favorite over any of the other characters in her Wonderland was because she loved knights. It was one of the main reasons that she created him. The other reason was that she thought the White Queen should have a personal knight to protect and fight for her instead of just having her guards. This is why she based him off the Queen's sword, the Vorpal blade. His purpose is to serve and protect the Queen, the one who wields him. Suddenly Edith realized something while she staring at him.

"Shouldn't you be with the Queen right now?" asked Edith.

"Normally I would be, but this is a special occasion," replied Vorpal."Really? And what makes it special?" "Why, the fact that you are here in wonderland, of course."

"And how did I get here if I might ask?"

"Why, I brought you here of course, you silly."

"I know that. I meant how where you able to bring me here and how do I know that this is not just some dream I'm having right now?"

Vorpal just let out a tired sigh but did not respond. This caused Edith's irritation level to build. She crossed her arms in front of her as she started to glare at the white knight.

"Well are you going to answer me or not?" she asked.

"Why can't you just believe that this world is real?" whined Vorpal "Why can't you just take my word for it."

"Because what guarantee do I have that this truly is real and not a dream where you are lying to me? You could be telling me what I want to know." At this Edith, turn her back to Vorpal to look out at the view of wonderland once again. She heard him let out another tired sigh.

"If minds worked that way we all would be insane. Besides, if this was a dream then why do you not recognize your wonderland? Why does every thing look strange to you? You spent so much time here, yet you do not even know half of the inhabitants here that you created. In fact our world has changed so much since you last been here that it's a complete stranger to you."

This caused Edith to turn around again to face him again. Now she was curious.

"Vorpal, what do you mean this world changed and how did you know I don't recognize any of this wonderland?" asked Edith.

"Here, I have an idea. Look out over the balcony at Wonderland and close your eyes. Try to remember what your wonderland looked like and tell me what you see when you open your eyes." Edith did as he told, but when see tried to imagine the wonderland she created, she could not see a thing, only the blackness of her closed eyelids. When she opened her eyes, she saw an image flash in front of her. She could not make out anything, but it left her shaking from an unknown fear that chilled her to the bone.

"You saw it, didn't you?" asked Vorpal "You saw what could have happened to Wonderland if we didn't leave. The desolate place it would have become."

"I-I did." Edith replied in a shaky tone. She took a deep breath to calm herself. "Vorpal, when did all this happen? Why is everything so different? What happened here that caused all this? How is it even possible this is all real?"

"Well, to answer your first question, the last time you came to wonderland was in your sleep two weeks ago, but wonderland really started altering itself about a month ago. It started off, so subtle that we didn't notice it at first. Soon as the days went by, we notice fissures appearing at random spots throughout wonderland. It wasn't long before we discovered what was happening. Your state of mind was causing wonderland to slowly fall apart. Anything that caught near the fissures or that fell in was erased from existence. The sky turned a dark shade of gray. People's bodies were ripped apart as all trace of them ceased to exist. Plants withered and died. Buildings crumbled into dust. The castles barely survived. The only place that remained intact was the valley of sorrow and the river of tears. If wonderland didn't break away from your mind into reality, we all would have perished. How we broke away into reality, no one knows. After we broke away, we saw how sad and miserable you were and decided to help you. It wasn't easy, but we were able to access your world momentarily. That's how I was able to grab you and bring you here. Remember how I said if chose to stay in your world, you wouldn't get another chance to come to ours. I wasn't lying. We risked destroying wonderland when we connected to your world so we dare not do it again. As for how we connected, we used the looking glass mirror. I'll explain and show it later. As for now, how about we see the king and queen. I pretty sure they would like to see you." Vorpal waited nervously for Edith's response, unsure how she would react or if she would even believe him. Edith just stood there her eyes downcast as she took his story in.

_Could he be telling the truth? Is this place truly real? It can't be true, could it? How else could all this be explained. Why would my own mind try to trick me? It would also explain why I started hearing his voice in my head. Why would some else's voice be in my head instead of my own. It doesn't even feel like I'm asleep. Besides wouldn't living in this world be better than going back to a home that no longer exists. I'll just have to believe him for now. Besides I am either going to end up staying in this world or I'll wake up back at the station. Considering the options I have, I'm going to choose to believe him and see what happens. Besides what harm can come from believing in a pleasant lie, especially when the truth hurts so much. _

Having come to her decision, Edith raised her head to meet the white knight's gaze.

"I still have my doubts, but I believe you, for now that is."

"Well that's good news. Then if you have no more questions, shall we go see the queen and king?" Vorpal replied in a cherry voice. As Vorpal turned around to lead the way, Edith grabbed his hand stopping him.

"Wait! Before we go, I have one last question I want to ask."

Vorpal turned around to face the child once again, puzzled as to what she may want to know now.

"And what would you like to ask?"

"Since when did you start wearing a helmet?" responded Edith with a smug smile on her face. At this, the knight broke out into laughter. After a few seconds, he stopped himself and smiled at her.

"I was wondering if you were ever going to notice that."

Edith watched as he took off his helmet and tossed it over her head. She turned in time to see it bounce off the balcony rail and fall over the edge. She looked back at the knight with an amused smile on her face.

"Are you allowed to throw things of the balcony edges?"

Vorpal just shrugged in response. Without the helmet on, Edith could now see what he looked like. He had messy, short black hair and bright silver colored eyes that gleamed in light. They were the color of light reflecting off water or _steel_.

"If that was the last of your questions then shall we get going?"

"Yep! You can take me to see the king and queen now." What Edith didn't expect was to be scooped up in Vorpal's arms as he started to run down hallway.

"Hey! What do you think you are doing?" asked Edith in a surprised tone. Vorpal just chuckled.

"What? You did say to take you to see the king and queen."

"I never said that you could carry me though." Edith replied.

"What? It's much faster this way. We have to make up for lost time we spent chatting. By now, the queen probably thinks that we got lost in the hallways. Look out!" Vorpal shouted as he barely avoided running into two maids as they came around the corner. Both let out shrieks of fright as he ran by.

"You're mad Vorpal. That's all I can say about you."

"Really? Then what does that say about the person who created me, hmm?" he responded cheerfully. Edith didn't respond to him. She just tightened her grip on him as he ran through the twisting passages that made up White Castle.

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><p><strong>AN: What do you think? I'll try to get the second half up as soon as I can.<strong>

**Vorpal: Leave a Review. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: The heads of White Castle **

**AN: second half of chapter 3. Now you know why i spit it. This half is long. Enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hnkna**

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><p>After 5 minutes of running through halls and scaring passing maids, Vorpal finally came to a stop in front of two tall ornamented doors.<p>

"And here we are." he said as he placed Edith back on her feet.

"Finally. I'm surprised you didn't trip on the way considering how fast you were running." Vorpal just chuckled.

"Shall we?" At that, he pushed open the doors into the throne room. The room itself was massive. Two rows of balconies lined the top of the sidewalls. Standing against the foot of the walls on both sides were dozens of knights standing at attention. They stood so still, it was impossible to tell if the were real soldiers or statues. In the center of the room's floor was what appeared to be a giant black and white checkered chessboard. At the opposite end of the room were stairs that lead to a raised platform that sat in front of a giant stain glass window. On the platform were to two visible figures dressed in white, sitting on twin thrones. As Edith walked stairs up to the thrones alongside Vorpal, Edith recognized one of the people.

"Lorina!" shouted Edith.

"Who?" asked the White Queen in confusion.

Edith rub her eyes before taking another look at queen, realizing it was someone else that looks like her deceased sister, but is still someone else.

"I'm sorry. I miss took you for someone else." replied Edith as she shook her head to clear any more delusions she might still have. As Edith took another look at the queen, she realized that the only features that the queen shared with her oldest sister are her facial appearance and hair color. She has the same golden color hair but, was only half her sister's length and was in curls. Her eyes were a light chestnut color instead of the light blue Lorina had.

"It is quite alright, it can happen to anyone." said the king with a soft smile on his face. He had snow-white hair and sky blue eyes. He wore a falcon pendant around his neck. He looked very similar to some Edith knew, but she just couldn't remember who.

"Your highness." said Vorpal with a bow.

"Ah, Vorpal. It took you long enough to show up. We were just about to send some one to find you." said the king.

"You thought that you may have gotten yourself lost," teased the queen.

"Please forgive me for making your highnesses wait. I had to explain some things to princess here." Edith shot a glare at Vorpal for the nickname, who just smiled innocently at her.

"So you are Edith," said the queen, "You have grown so much since we last saw you. It's been quite some time since we last met that I doubt you remember us. Oh dearly me, we forgot to introduce ourselves, how rude of us. I am Queen Ciana."

"And I am King Gavin"

"It is a pleasure to meet you, your highnesses," said Edith as she gave a small bow.

"Please there is no need to bow to us my dear. You are not one of our subjects, unlike the pest standing next to you," said King Gavin.

"Hey, I'm not that much of a pest," whined Vorpal as the queen and Edith giggled.

"I believe the shrieks of fright we heard from the servants on your way here, prove our accusation" stated Queen Ciana.

"Every time you go sprinting down those halls, we hear shouts from all the staff that you scare nearly colliding with them. All the accidents you nearly cause. In fact-"

"Wait, he does that all time?" asked Edith, interrupting King Gavin.

"He does," responded Gavin. "In fact, I am surprise that he doesn't hurt himself. That he hasn't fallen or run into someone in those halls."

"Well, there was that one time he fell down the stairs." said the Queen. At this Edith burst out into an uncontrollable fit of laughter.

"Not my fault they greased the soles of my shoes," grumbled Vorpal.

"W-Who?" asked Edith as she attempted to calm herself down.

"No one important. I'll introduce you to them later, if I don't kill them first that is," replied Vorpal.

"If you haven't killed them yet, you never will Vorpal. They have done similar deeds before. Oh, would you look at the time, it's almost one o'clock." said Gavin.

"You are right, it's almost time to start today's event. In fact, Edith, why don't you stay and watch? I'm sure you will enjoy, that is if you can spend the time?" asked the Queen.

"Of course she can spend the time," replied Vorpal, "What other plans could she have? But to let you know, after it's finished we're leaving. The others are going to want to see her as well. I'm also pretty sure she would like to have a look around Wonderland. Unless of course I'm wrong and don't want to meet everyone else and want to stay coped up in the castle," teased Vorpal.

Edith took a moment to think on what she wanted to do.

"Well, I do want to see this special event of yours, but I also want to meet the others. About how long is this event going to last?"

"Don't worry my dear, it won't take long. You will still have time to leave and head on your way to visit any of the other residents you wish to see." replied Ciana.

"Why don't you watch from one of the Balconies?" suggested Gavin, "You may like the view more from up there and you can take the balcony hallways out. It's much quicker, as long as Vorpal doesn't fall down the stairs again, that is."

Edith and Ciana giggled while Vorpal just glared at the King, who smirked in reply.

"Can we get going now?" asked Vorpal, eager to leave before either the king or queen can say something to mock him more.

"Very well, but Vorpal, do not forget your previous order still stands," replied Ciana.

"I never forget an order, especially one so important. Edith and I shall take our leave, Good day my lords. This way princess, no need for you to get lost." Edith glared at Vorpal as he began descending the steps. Half way down Edith called out to him.

"Careful, no need to trip and fall down the stairs again." Vorpal stopped dead in his tracks. He didn't need eyes in the back of his head to see the three smiles plastered on their faces.

"Now I am definitely going to kill them." muttered Vorpal as he continued on his way again. Vorpal led Edith to the second row balconies, where Edith chose the middle one to sit and watch from. As they sat down in the chairs placed there, the checkered tiles on the throne room floor flipped over. Now standing on the tiles were two life-size armies of chessmen. Both though were white.

"Are those real people?" asked Edith.

"Of course not. If real people were used then it would cause too big of a mess to clean up. Those are living statues. Half of the army here is made up of them. You can barely tell the difference between a living statue and a live man." replied Vorpal.

As they waited for the game to commence, Edith noticed people filling in the remaining balconies. Some she recognized as servants, but the others she wasn't sure who they could be.

"Vorpal, who are those people? I recognize the servants, but who are the others?"

"Oh those people are nobles, and the others are the wealthy. Few commoners can come to these events for one reason or another, but there are always a couple of them about as well. And it also seems that the king has made the first move."

As Edith returned her attention to the board below, she saw that the pieces had moved. She so focused on what Vorpal was saying that she didn't hear the king and queen make their announcement welcoming everyone or when they called out their first moves. As the game dragged on Edith felt boredom seeping in. Finally the first blow of the match was struck by Ciana on her seventh turn. The audience watched in awe as Ciana's pawn decapitated Gavin's. With a few swipes from his sword only a small pile of rubble remained of Gavin's pawn.

"This is brutal," commented Edith "Do they always hold games like these?"

"No, not always. Some times there are duels, jousting, and archery tournaments. There is also the occasional ball they host."

"And how often do they have these events?"

"Every two weeks or so. They have never gone more than a month without having some sort of event. The last event was a Masquerade."

"Those other events sound more entertaining than this little war they have going."

"Watch the game and by the end of it, you will no doubt have changed your mind."

As Edith shifted her attention back to on going chess game she wonder how could watching a chess game be entertaining in any way.

…...

What seemed like an easy victory for queen Ciana, turned into a desperate last stand as king Gavin cornered her king piece.

"Checkmate!" he announced. Everyone watched as Gavin's king piece walked across the board to stand in front of Ciana's. With one clean swipe from his sword he beheaded the captured king piece. As soon as the head shattered on the group everyone in the balconies began cheering and clapping. Edith found herself clapping as well. Even though Vorpal was right and she did enjoy watching the match unfold, she would not admit it to him out loud.

"I would like to thank you all for your audience today." said king Gavin dismissing the spectators. As everyone began to leave, Edith noticed someone wearing what she believes to be a black suit, instead of the grays, whites, or yellows everyone else was wearing.

"Who is that?" she asked. Vorpal turned in time to catch a glimpse of him before he walked out of view.

"Oh, him? He's the messenger. We'll meet him later," replied Vorpal as turned to leave, "Now we should get going, lots to see, and lots to do."

Edith followed Vorpal as he led them outside the castle, through town. The streets were filled with busy people going from one place to another. There were street vendors every now and then selling fruits, fish, and what other merchandise they may have on hand.

As they walked along Edith grew curious as to where they were going.

"You mind telling me where we are going?"

Vorpal stopped walking putting a hand to his chin as he started thinking.

"I didn't put any real thought on where we should go first to be honest. Hmm."

Edith watched Vorpal contemplate for a moment before he snapped his fingers.

"I got it. I know who we should go see, and it is a surprise I know you will love. I think we might run into some of the others on the way as well. Lets hurry." said Vorpal as he began walking again leading Edith through town.

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><p><strong>AN: Who could they be off to meet? Can you guess.<strong>

**Vorpal: Find out next chapter. **

**SDW:Remember to review.**

**Vorpal: Or else i find you. Haha.**


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Sorry for the long wait. Went out of town for a few days. Once again I decided to split a very long chapter into two shorter ones. Please enjoy this half as I work to finish the other half.**

**Vorpal: You are all going to love the second half trust me.**

**SDW: Quiet man, you're going to give it away.**

**Edith:SDW does not own HNKNA**

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><p><strong>Chapter 5: A forest of Mad Creatures. Part 1: Green smoke that whispers wisdom<strong>

As Vorpal and Edith reached the end of town, they approached the iron gates of the outer castle wall. Standing at both sides of the gate were two rooks. Both rooks were wearing bulky armor with battlements on their shoulder plates and helmets. Each had a heavy battle-ax strapped on their back and a sword at their side. The moment they noticed Vorpal and Edith approaching them, they each banged their fist once on the gate signaling it to open. With the sound of cranking gears, the twin doors swung open. Vorpal a short nod to the guards as they walked by, stepping on the dirt path that lead deep into the forest of wonderland. As they walked along the dirt path, Edith stared in awe at all the colors of the forest. There were trees with leaves of red, green, orange, yellow, and every other color imaginable. The color of the tree bark varied from tree to tree. Each ranged from blue to black to pink and every other color imaginable. Even the dirt path changed color every now and then. It was truly a colorful place. When they were deep into the forest, blank signs started appearing alongside the path and on trees. The signs were of all shapes, sizes, different colors and pointed in all directions, but not one had a single letter written on it, which puzzled Edith.

"Vorpal, what's with all the blank signs? They all are pointing to places, but have none have anything written on them." Vorpal just chuckled.

"Silly goose, they do have writing they just don't see why they should show you it. They contain anything from directions to insults and everything in between. Some of them also want something in exchange, that something is usually a snack."

"I don't follow what you mean"

"Watch and learn." Vorpal replied. He approached the nearest tree, unsheathing his sword in the process. He stabbed his sword up into the lower branches of the tree. A small blue bird flew out, startled by his actions. They watch as it attempted to fly into another tree. As it neared trunk of the tree, one of the signs on it jumped out at the bird mid-air. Teeth appeared along the edge of the sign as it folded in half, crushing the little blue bird. A few stray feathers the only sign it was ever there. Just as quickly, as it lashed out, the sign returned to its place on the trunk of the tree, no evidence of its recent meal staining its face. Edith was shocked by what she had just witnessed. She opened her mouth about to say something when she heard a loud scratching sound, coming from all around her. She glanced around looking for the source of the noise when she noticed that writing was appearing on each sign. The writing was as colorful as the forest, that no color repeated itself in the same sign.

"Now do you understand what I talking about?" asked Vorpal interrupting Edith's thoughts.

"I do, but none of these signs make any sense. They point in different directions, but each say it's the path to the same place. Then there are the ones that are just saying random things that make no sense and the rest are just pointless insults directed to who ever reads them. How do I get them to tell me something useful?"

Vorpal chuckled as he used his sword to split in half the nearest sign. Surprisingly a small cascade of blood poured out of the split wood.

"If you ever want them to be forward with you, just use a little persuasion," replied Vorpal, "Besides the signs aren't wrong, there are many ways to get to the destination you want. It all depends on how fast you want to get there and if you want to do a little exploring along the way. I never get lost here unless I intend to. Now shall we get going? We won't need the signs' help in finding our friend." Edith hurried to catch up to him as he walked away, ignoring the broken sign on the floor who's blood arranged itself to spell the words _mad swordsman _in the soil_._ As they continue to walk along, a green smoke began to appear in the air and the path turned to a permanent green surrounded by rainbow grass. It smelled like mixture of flowers and some unknown substance that was unfamiliar to Edith. As they continued deeper into the woods, the smoke thickened into a thin green fog.

"Vorpal, what is this smoke?" asked Edith, puzzled as to where it all was coming from. Vorpal just smiled as he continued on ignoring her question.

"Well? Are you going to answer me or not." asked Edith, irritation showing in her voice.

"Calm down. It's the way to your new friend." Vorpal replied smiling. As they walked further along the path it changed into a permanent green color and toadstools began showing up in number alongside it. The farther the two walked the larger in size the mushrooms appeared in till they were almost as tall as the trees around them. As they neared the end of the path, Edith noticed a large, flat, green and white spotted mushroom lying low on the ground in front of them. Lying on top of it, taking puffs from a blue bottle hookah was a young woman. She had long black hair with green streaks going through it, and piercing green eyes that shined like emeralds. She wore a dark green dress that was layer in a way that resembled a caterpillar's body. It had short blue sleeves that stopped at her elbows and a dark blue frill around the collar. The most surprising features on her were the thin black antennas sticking up from the top of her head with small green bubs on the end and the second pair of arms she had. She seemed to be oblivious of the pair as they approached. They watch as she blew green smoke into air between puffs of her hookah. Edith stood staring at her as a small flash of recognition went through her mind.

"Caterpillar," she whispered so silently that it almost seemed that she said nothing at all. Surprisingly Caterpillar heard her faint whisper. She smiled as she turned her head to greet her guest.

"I have not seen you in awhile knight. And who is this you brought with you?" As she spoke, she took small puffs from her hookah between every few words. Edith was surprised from the sound of her voice. She expected it to sound hoarse or dry from all the smoking she was doing, but instead was pleasant and soft that reminded her of a whisper carried on the wind. Vorpal smiled at Caterpillar.

"Now why would I answer a question you already know the answer to?"

Caterpillar chuckled, "I do, but isn't it rude not to introduce a guest. No matter. It is a great pleasure to see you again Edith my dear."

"It's nice to see you again too, Caterpillar." replied Edith.

"Well it's good to see that you still remember me some what. And if you like, you can call me by my name, Bena."

"Ok." replied a distracted Edith.

"Something wrong?" asked Bena.

"It's just that you remember everything about me, but I can only remember your name and face. It's not fair that I can't remember anything about anyone here. I'm a stranger in my own world. I don't like this one bit, I want to remember," cried Edith.

"Ahh, don't sound so down my dear. You will remember, it will just take some time and what memories you don't remember will be replace by the new ones you create here. I think they will even be better than the old ones you have." Bena took a long drag of her hookah before blowing a stream of smoke into the air. Instead of dispersing into the air, the smoke morphed into a group of green butterflies. Edith held her hand out as they flew closer to her. She felt one land on her head while another landed on the back of her raised hand. When she brought her other hand to touch it, she was surprised to learn that the butterfly was indeed solid though it was made only from smoke. Edith giggled as she began playing with the butterflies that gathered on her. While Edith was distracted playing with them, Bena turned her attention to the smiling knight who has remained silent during their whole exchange.

"Take good care of her Vorpal. I don't want you forgetting your duty."

"As if I ever forget a task I am assigned."

"Well then, you two should get going before you're late." With a flick of her hand all the butterflies on Edith evaporated back into green smoke. Both chuckled at Edith's disappointed look.

"I'll see around then Caterpillar. We should go now Edith, we still have to get to their home before the sun goes down."

"Wait, whose home?" asked a confused Edith, "I thought we came here to see Caterpillar."

"Actually no. We just happen to stumble on her home on our way there. As for whose house we are going to, it's a surprise." Turning his attention back to Bena, "Fare well Caterpillar, I hope you enjoyed our company."

"Good-bye to you too, knight. Good-bye Edith, feel free to visit when ever you want."

"Bye, Bena. It was good seeing you again." She turned to join Vorpal as they walked back. Unbeknownst to her as she walked away, Bena blew a stream of smoke into the air toward Vorpal, carrying the words she did not wish to discuss aloud. As it drew near him it curled around his ears whispering her words.

"_There is a madness within her Vorpal. Her mind still stands on the brink of insanity. She stands on ledge ready to fall off. If she falls, she will lose herself and her mind destroyed, but if she descends slowly down, then her madness will become one with her and her true self will show. My question to you now is; what will you do? If you do not handle this matter correctly we lose her and will have you to blame. If she threatens to fall, you must be ready to catch her. Do not fail in your task knight or my poison will be the last thing you breathe. I leave her in your hands. Take care." _As her message finished, he could not help but smile at her threat. He knew his task and knew better than to fail it. He took a glance at Edith who had begun walking a few steps ahead of him, humming to herself.

"I live to protect those I serve," he murmured as they continued to walk the path as the sun began to drop in the sky.

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><p><strong>AN: So we have meet our first wonderlander in the forest. Who is next I wonder. Hint there are 6 more joining us next chapter.<strong>

**Vorpal: What a fun bunch. Can't wait.**

**Alice: When do I come in?**

**SDW:Not for a couple chapters. This will be a long story in total. I have to finish introducing this wonderland before we go to yours and clash them together.**

**Edith: Please review. If anyone can guess all six characters in the next chapter correctly, they will get a quick insight in some of the other locations and the new and original OCs living there. Hint: the first one is the hatter's wife. See you next chapter.**


	6. Chapter 6

**I am so sorry for this long delay in updating. I got in a fight with my sister and she deleted this off my computer for revenge so I had to restart from scratch. While rewriting I decided to add a few things to this chapter (as if it wasn't long enough). I also had to deal with a lot of stuff (Events such as AX ****J, trips, ect.) and later had some computer problems. I hope the length of this chapter makes up for the long wait. Also, one last note before I forget, I like to thank the people who reviewed and favorite so far:**

**HallowBlue**

**XxxPureRosexxx**

**TheNextAlice**

**SmileRen**

**Serasenshi**

**Mushierooms**

**Chuu112**

**Bloodmoonwanes**

**Dragon violist**

**Bubblesxxpops**

**Thanks so much you guys. For the rest of you, enjoy and remember to review and tell me what you think so I know that I have people who still want me to continue this story.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 6: A Forest of Mad Creatures Part 2: Tears of sadness, Mad Tea and a little Blood. <strong>

As the pair continued their journey through the forest, Edith felt herself growing tired as the sun dropped lower and lower in the sky. Vorpal on the other hand showed no signs of weariness as he trekked on, not slowing in pace. After failing to stifle a yawn, Edith decided to speak up.

"Are we close yet? It's going to be dark any second now."

"What's the matter? You growing tired?" asked Vorpal.

"No," lied Edith, "I'm just wondering how far away we are from our destination." Edith let out another yawn, which caused Vorpal to smirk at her.

"You say you're not tried, but your body says otherwise. If you want, I could carry you." Edith shook her head, "No thanks, I am cable of walking on my own." As Edith let out another yawn, she felt herself picked up off the ground and was now in the arms of a smiling knight.

"I would have thought that your parents would have raised you to be above lying," teased Vorpal.

"Shut it," replied a tired Edith as she felt herself pulled even closer to sleep. As Edith began to succumb to the oblivion of sleep, she took one last look at the stars. '_They're as colorful as the forest,' _she thought before falling asleep. Vorpal smiled at the slumbering form of Edith in his arms as he continued to stroll even deeper into the forest where the only light came from the full moon and the many stars that shown above. Their light barely pierced the branches hanging above, leaving most of the forest shrouded in shadows. As he continued along, he could hear the rustling of bushes coming from all around him, hear the soft pat of small feet and see the glint of red eyes.

Amused Vorpal began humming to himself as he pretended to be oblivious of the creatures stalking him. Other than the occasional chirp of crickets and hoots of an owl, the only sounds penetrating the midnight silence were the silent snickering of the beasts and the knights humming. As he felt them getting ready to surround and pounce on him, he caught a fleeting glimpse of one the animals. Jackals. This brought a twist grin to Vorpal's face. '_Some thing to kill, what fun!_' he thought cheerily. He watched as the dog-like creatures walked out of the foliage surrounding him. Their two pairs of eyes fill with hunger and bloodlust. Vorpal not worried in the slightest recited a strange, poorly made, poem aloud. One of the flower girls at the castle made it and for some reason he could never forget it.

"_Rivers of blood left in my wake, _

_As your life I am destine to take. _

_Your screams of pain,_

_Bring me no disdain._

_Through valleys I march while in the dark, _

_Where my violence has left its mark._

_My laughter that rings in your ear, _

_Causes you the ultimate fear."_

As the jackals neared their prey, ready to pounce, Vorpal put his hand on his sword's hilt. While still holding Edith in one arm, he unsheathed his sword, posed, ready to strike.

"_My silver blade goes, __**Snicker-Snack**__!"_

* * *

><p>As Edith began stirring from her dream, she became aware of a thumping sound close to her ear. As her eyes fluttered open, she slowly became aware that she was sitting in the shade of a tree, the morning sunshine reaching only her feet through the leaves. As she tried to stand up, she found that there was something holding her down. When she looked to see what it was, she found that one of Vorpal's arms was wrapped around her, holding her in place. She looked to her left to find Vorpal sleeping against the tree behind them. He was no longer wearing his armor, but a white trench coat instead and had his sword out across his lap clenched tightly in his left hand. Its silver blade stained red with drying blood. When Edith looked at his face, she noticed that he also had a few stray drops of red on his cheek.<p>

"Vorpal," whispered Edith as she attempted to nudge the knight awake. After a few more nudges the knight began to stir. He opened one eye and smiled the moment he saw Edith.

"Good morning. So how is our heavy sleeper doing? You missed a beautiful night sky. I take it you had no problems sleeping."

"That's what I want to talk to you about. What happened while I was asleep?" Edith asked while pointing at his sword.

"Oh that? That's nothing," Vorpal replied with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Some of Wonderland's creatures wanted a mid-night snack. Unfortunately, for them, they picked one that fights back." He let out a sigh of disappointment. "They were not as much fun as I hope for though. Even with me carrying you in one hand, it was still too easy to kill them all."

Edith stared at Vorpal in disbelief.

"You mean to tell me that while I was asleep and you were carrying me, you fought with a bunch of creatures and I supposedly slept through all of it."

"Pretty much," replied Vorpal as stood up to stretch. "Well now that we are rested, shall we continue on our journey my little sleeping beauty?" asked Vorpal as he picked his bloodstained sword off the ground. When he glanced at Edith, he noticed her glare.

"What?"

"I don't like you calling me by those nicknames of yours." she replied.

"But they suit you so well. No matter. Let's get going." Vorpal grabbed Edith by the back collar of her dress lifting up in the before setting her back down on her feet. His actions earned him a glare that he ignored. Edith knowing it would be pointless to start another argument with him followed in silence.

Not long into their travel did Edith notice the air become misty and the depressing aura that began to flood the forest around them. As they journeyed closer to the source the plants sagged downward, flowers hung their heads, the bright colors of the forest dimmed to dull shades, and the mist thickened to the point were droplets hung in the air almost as if the air around them was crying. Edith wanted to ask where they where, but felt as if she had been through here before. Soon she was able to hear the tiny trickle of a stream in the distance. Only when they approached what Edith expected to be a small stream, she was surprise to find a large river in front of her. The water's surface shimmered in a way that it looked as if it were made from liquefied crystal. As Edith's gaze traveled around her surroundings she realize that she knew this place, had in fact had been here many times during her long months of sadness.

"The Valley of Sorrow and the River of Tears," said Vorpal interrupting Edith's thoughts, "The place where people go to forget their sorrows. A river created by the tears of others. A place infused with sadness."

Edith approached the river and gazed into its water. In it, she saw images of her oldest sister, Lorina, along with her mother and her father flash by on the river surface. She reached out to the water's surface, leaning forward, but felt a hand on her shoulder stopping her. She turned to see Vorpal shake his head. Edith stood there on the bank staring into the water with Vorpal at her side. After a short time in silence, Edith spoke.

"Vorpal...why has this valley not changed like the rest of wonderland?" Judging by the strain in her voice, Vorpal knew that it pained her to ask. He expected her to ask but it did not make it any easier telling her, knowing how she was probably going to react.

"It hasn't changed much because this is the only place in Wonderland that you frequented during the last couple of months. It's the only place you can still remember," said Vorpal in a sorrowful voice. Edith could feel herself tremble slightly. She could still recall all the times she had fled here to cry out all her sorrows. Only now, thinking back to those times, she realizes that there was something there that she had ignored, a sound in the background. They were not the sounds of birds chirping or of the river water trickling, but of the ground cracking, the sky ripping and the cries of pain and angst, all coming from a distance. They were the sounds of Wonderland falling apart. All the times that Edith had come to the River of Tears, she could hear the destruction of Wonderland, but chose to ignore it, instead focusing on her own grief and self-pity. She could have done something to stop it if she only bothered to pay more attention to what was going on. Edith's vision began to blur as her eyes started to water.

"It's my fault isn't it? That Wonderland was nearly destroyed. I still came here to cry but never bothered to check on the rest of Wonderland. I end up ignoring all of you." Edith paused to take in a shaky breath before continuing. "Who disappeared?" she asked.

Vorpal hesitated before answering, "We lost a couple towns all around Wonderland and…Griffin didn't make it."

Edith felt as if she had been stabbed through her heart. At the mention of his name, Edith could suddenly remember everything about him. His brown curly hair and soft blue eyes with the golden wings on his back. He was the General for the White Kingdom's armies. She remembered how kind he was, always willing to lend a hand, and how he always acted like a gentleman. Now he was gone forever.

"Was…was there anyone else?" asked Edith as she did her best not to break into tears, knowing that if she did, she won't be able to stop.

Again, Vorpal hesitated unsure if he should tell her or not. Sighing Vorpal knew that it would be pointless lying because she will about one way or another.

"There were three others." Vorpal watched as Edith's body tensed up as if she was expecting to be hit by a series of blows. Considering how much this was hurting her, they might as well have been. "We lost Admiral Nelson Turtle and Captain Gonzo Dodo, along with his brother Luka Lizard."

Edith flinched at each name as her memories of each one of them came rushing back to her. She remembers how kind and friendly admiral Nelson was, how he scared easily and loved the sea. He was a short round man with white hair tied into a ponytail like those old powdered wigs and bright green eyes. He was always handing out trinkets that he collect from his many voyages. They ranged from broken glass bottles to pearls to shark teeth. He was also close friends with Bena the Caterpillar. He was also known for racing his ship, _The Griffin_, in the caucus race against Captain Gonzo and his ship _The Crow. _Gonzo was also a kind man like Nelson. Gonzo was taller than Nelson and had orange color eyes, but had the same styled white hair. He was not only a captain, but a stargazer, explorer, and a skilled fisherman as well. He was always ready to take on any challenge or obstacle no matter how difficult or ridiculous it may have been. Gonzo was the one who created the caucus race, the race with no beginning or end.

His brother Luka was constantly getting himself caught up in his adventures. Luka was an apprentice carpenter. Unlike his brother, Luka had black shaggy hair and emerald green eyes. He wasn't very brave and frightened easily like Nelson. He was quite gullible which got him caught in many sticky situations. Despite his faults, Luka was fun to be around, but now he's gone. Luka, Gonzo, Nelson and Griffin were all gone. No matter how Edith or anyone else may try to convince her otherwise, she knew that in the end, it was her fault that they were gone and now she will have to carry that with her for the rest of her life. Vorpal crouched down behind Edith before turning her around and pulling her into a hug.

Immediately Edith broke into heavy sobs, clutching onto the front of Vorpal's trench coat. Vorpal stroked the back of Edith's head in an attempt calm her down. He could feel her tears soak into his coat. Vorpal could feel the tears rolling down his coat to collect into a tiny puddle on the grass. The puddle was then pulled into a thin thread-like stream as the tears were pulled into the river to merge with the countless ones that already existed there. On the surface of the water, an image of this very scene formed, playing itself out in silence before fading behind the glossy surface of the river. Vorpal always felt indifferent about the Valley of Sorrow, but now, he truly did hate it.

* * *

><p>Edith found herself awaking in Vorpal's arms yet again, but this time he was on the move. She could not recall when she had fallen asleep and could not tell for how long she had been slumbering. Glancing around at the surrounding forest, she noticed that they were no longer in the valley of sorrow, but the section of forest they were in was different from the rest she had already seen. Unlike the other parts of the forest that were made up of a rainbow of colors, this section was mostly pink, purple and black.<p>

"Looks like somebody is finally awake," Vorpal said, interrupting her thoughts. Edith glanced up toward the smiling face of the knight.

"Vorpal, what happened?"

"Simple, you cried yourself to sleep so I carried you away from that horrid place. You have been sleeping for about a quarter of an hour." Vorpal paused to look up at trees around him. "What's the point of exploring if you sleep through all of it," teased Vorpal.

"Well, I am awake now, so can you put me down?"

Vorpal still feeling a little mischievous decide to tease Edith a little further. "As you command, my tiny princess."

Edith felt herself bristle at being called small and a princess. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she turned and stomped on Vorpal's foot.

"Ow!" cried Vorpal. "That was uncalled for my little princess. What did I ever do to deserve that?" asked Vorpal as he feigned innocence.

"Keep mocking me and I will aim for your other foot," threatened Edith as she glared at him.

"Me, mock you!" gasped Vorpal as he placed a hand on his chest feigning hurt. "I would never do such a thing."

"Keep it up, and we will see what happens."

Vorpal, having decided that he has teased Edith long enough, chuckled as he dropped his façade. "Very well then. Now that we are done bickering, shall we continue onward? There is someone expecting us and we have already wasted enough time."

"And whose fault do you think that is?" replied Edith.

"Why, yours of course." replied Vorpal nonchalantly.

"What! How is it my fault when you started it!" yelled Edith as she grew more and more frustrated with Vorpal.

"But you escalated it." replied Vorpal, unfazed by the glare he was receiving. "Now its stop this before we get off track even further. There is someone waiting for us some where around this part of the forest."

"Who would meet us in the middle of strange forest like this?" asked Edith.

"_It's rude to insult the looks of another person's home."_

Edith little out a small shriek as she was startled by the unknown voice. She glanced around looking for the speaker of the voice, but could see no one. She turned to face Vorpal who was staring off into the distance.

"Did you hear that?" she asked.

"I did. Must be the wind." he replied.

Edith looked at him in disbelief before putting a hand to her head. "You are giving me a headache."

"A short walk should fix that." Without waiting for a reply, Vorpal continued down the dirt path. Knowing that it would be futile to argue with the knight, Edith followed him. Constantly during their trek, Edith felt as if some one was watching her, but every time she turned around, she could not find anyone. Finally, Edith decided to break the silence around them.

"Vorpal, how much longer before we find this friend of yours?"

"_Someone lacks patience, for you have already found him."_

Again, this unknown speaker startled Edith. She glanced all round, desperately trying to find the speaker. It was only until she noticed Vorpal gazing upward, did Edith think to look up in the trees. She was surprised to find a pair of yellow-green cat eyes staring back at her. She watched as a black striped, dark purple colored cat, crawled out of the shadows to rest on the very end of a low-level tree branch.

"What are you?" asked Edith.

The cat flashed her, a sharp-tooth grin. "I believe the correct term is who are you? No matter this is a purrfect time to introduce myself."

The cat jumped from the branch and morphed mid-air. Now a large tiger stood a few feet away from her, still wearing its grin. The tiger began walking toward when it morphed again. Now standing in front of Edith, was a young man about as tall as Vorpal with purple cat ears and tail. He wore black trousers with a near black, purple shirt. He had dark blue-purple hair that appeared to be wrapped around his neck under a purple scarf. The scarf covered the lower half of his face, stopping under his nose. On the front of the scarf was a design of a sharp-tooth grin on top of where his mouth would be. His yellow-green eyes gleamed with mischief.

"My name is Ches Ayman and it is great to see you again."

Edith was surprised that his scarf did not muffle his voice. Ches glance over to where Vorpal was standing, acting oblivious to his presence.

"Aren't you going to say hello or are you planning on ignoring me?"

Vorpal did not respond as he continued to stand, acting oblivious to his surroundings.

"Is he upset or something?" asked a puzzled Ches.

"I don't know. He was acting fine earlier," responded an equally puzzled Edith.

"Looks like there is nothing we can do so why don't we-AH!"

Edith jumped back, surprised by Ches' scream. As she stepped back, she noticed that Vorpal was now standing next to Ches. He had some how managed to move over to them without either one noticing and was now crushing Ches' tail under his foot.

"Hello _cat,_" Vorpal said through grit teeth, "You didn't think I would forget about you, did you?"

"N-Nice to see y-you too V-Vorpal," replied Ches, "D-Do y-you mind g-getting off m-my tail?"

Vorpal smirked as he leaned close to Ches' ear. "Now why would I do that? I think it is fair that I pay you back for '_cleaning_' my shoes. Did you think that I wouldn't realize that it was you, who greased them? You're the only person that could have gotten into my room without anyone else seeing you. I'll deal with the girls who gave you the so-called _grease_ later, but for now I'll have my fun with you."

Ches looked at Edith with pleading eyes. "H-Help me?"

"Vorpal get off his tail," Edith commanded a frustrated tone. To her surprise, Vorpal complied. As soon as Vorpal's foot came off Ches' tail, he jumped back a few feet cradling his bruised tail in his hands.

"Thanks. Now that my tail is out of harms way, shall we get going. We don't want to be late." Already, all trace of pain and discomfort had left his voice, acting as if nothing had happened.

"Wait, why does everyone, but me know where we are going," complained Edith.

Both Vorpal's and Ches' eyes gleamed with mischief. Vorpal was smirking and Edith was certain that Ches was doing the same under his scarf.

"It's a surprise," they both said in unison.

"A surprise is not a surprise unless it's a surprise," said Ches. Edith groaned in frustration.

"I am not going to get anything out of either of you, am I?" asked Edith.

"Nope." replied Vorpal.

"We should get going. No doubt _he_ is waiting for us, some where on the way."

"He's here? Well then we must get going right away." Vorpal paused to glance at Edith who was opening her mouth. "And we have no time for questions," he said as he grab Edith's hand and began walking further into the forest with Ches trailing behind.

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><p>After a few minutes of walking, Edith managed to free herself from Vorpal's grip. When she looked ahead further down the path, she saw someone standing in the distance. As they drew near, she was able to make out the details about this person as they drew closer and closer. The first detail was that he was wearing all black. A little closer and she was able to see that it was a man wearing an open, black, short sleeve dress jacket with a white undershirt with vertical black strips. On his legs, he wore black shorts and brown boots with folded flaps. There were thin white strips running down the sides of his sleeves and shorts. When they came to a stop just a few feet from him, Edith realized that it wasn't a man but a teenage boy who looked no older than sixteen. He was smiling as they approached. His hair was a golden blond color with faint white streaks. He had gentle ice blue eyes that were focused on her. Clipped to his hip on his right side was a saber with a gleaming, gold plated hilt. Clipped on his left was a gold pocket watch with a white cross on the coverlid. He was the first to speak.<p>

"I was wondering how long you guys were going to make me wait," he said smiling as he cocked his head to the side. "It is wonderful to see you again Edith."

He held out his hand, which Edith took. Instead of shaking it, like she expected him to, he leaned forward and kissed the back of it. Edith had to stifle a gasp. She was able to see the back of his head. Attached to it was a pair of long white rabbit ears that went to the middle of his back.

He smiled pleasantly as he released her hand.

"In case you have forgotten, I am Ran Whitman, the White Rabbit of White Castle."

As soon as she heard his name, Edith could feel more memories flooding back into her mind. Her vision blurred with images from her past that she had to blink repeatedly to clear them. As soon as she see clearly again, she smiled at Ran before hugging him.

"How could I forget Mr. Snowy," said Edith in a teasing manner. In the background, she could hear Vorpal and Ches snickering as Ran tensed under her.

"I was hoping you would have forgotten about that incident," groaned Ran "And I was also hoping you would stop comparing me to other rabbits."

Edith couldn't help, but smile at the memory.

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><p><strong>Flashback: age 6 12**

"_Look! Sis, Look!" shouted an enthusiastic Edith. Lorina looked up from the book she was reading to stare in the green eyes of her youngest sister. _

"_What has gotten you so happy?" she asked curiously, as Edith jumped up and down in place._

"_I found a white rabbit," exclaimed Edith happily, "Look!"_

_Lorina followed Edith's pointing finger to the garden. It had snowed heavily the night before so the entire garden looked like a white wonderland. Finding a white rabbit among the snow would be a little difficult, but Lorina was sure she could spot it if she looked carefully. After a few moments, she spotted it. It sat in front of the garden hedge, its pink nose twitching in the cool evening air. The small rabbit appeared to be staring at the two of them._

"_I see now. It's a cute little rabbit. I never thought I would see one roaming in our garden," said Lorina. _

"_How do you think it got here?" asked Edith._

"_I don't know. I'm just as puzzled as you," replied Lorina. _

_They watched as the rabbit start to take small steps towards them. It got a few feet before it fell through the snow. Only its ears remained visible above the snow as they twitched back and forth._

"_What happened?" asked Edith._

"_It looks like he fell through a hole that formed under the surface of the snow," explained Lorina._

_They watched as the rabbit slowly claimed out of the hole it fell in. It took a few hesitant steps before it start to hop across the snow. It only got another foot before it fell through the snow again. Edith burst into a fit of giggles as did Lorina. Edith ran from the porch to where the rabbit fell._

"_Edith what are you doing?" Lorina asked with a little worry. _

_Edith didn't respond. She reached into hole, pulling out the rabbit before hugging it to her chest._

"_Edith put him down. I don't what to explain to mother how you got scratched because the rabbit kicked you," scolded Lorina as she walked toward Edith. _

"_But he's so soft," whined Edith as she pressed her cheek against his fur. "I'm going to call you snowy."_

_Lorina stared at her unsure of what to do. She was surprised that instead of squirming and trying to get free, the rabbit remained still in her arms. It seemed content with its current situation. _

"_Where did the rabbit come from?"_

_Lorina jumped from surprise. She turned to see Alice standing behind them, staring wide-eye at the rabbit in Edith's arms. Alice walked up next to Lorina so was also standing in front of Edith and her rabbit. Alice reached out slowly to pet it. When her hand was close enough, the rabbit lifted its head to sniff the tips of her fingers. Satisfied, it sunk its head down back into Edith's arms. Alice gently stroked her fingers along the top of the rabbits head, in-between its ears._

"_Where did you find him?" asked Alice in a low voice._

_Edith looked up, noticing Alice for the first time. Her eyes were gleaming with joy as she smiled at her._

"_He was running around in our garden," replied Edith happily, as she continued to hug the little rabbit while Alice stroked its fur. _

"_Alice, I thought you said you were staying indoors today," said Lorina._

_Alice turned to face her older sister, almost forgetting why she had showed._

"_I came out here to tell you that mother wants you both inside before either of you can get sick."_

"_Very well then," replied Lorina. "You're going to have to say good-bye to Mr. Snowy now Edith."_

"_But I don't want to," whined Edith as she buried her face in his fur._

"_But he probably has a family that's waiting for him. You don't want to keep he from them, do you?" asked Alice._

"_Fine," Edith replied as she set the rabbit down in the snow. As soon Edith let go, the rabbit turned and headed toward the garden hedge. _

"_See. They are probably waiting for him right now. Come on, we should get inside before we upset mother." _

_As the three headed into the warmth of their home, Alice stopped and turned to gaze out at the garden. She was surprised when she spotted the white rabbit sitting in front of hedge watching her. Alice smiled at it before turning and stepping into home, closing the door behind her. The white rabbit sat there staring at the spot where Alice stood, before it turned and ran, disappearing into the hedge._

_~~X~~_

"_It's even snowing in Wonderland," said Edith as she did a twirl, her green and red stripped dress swishing around her. "Everything looks so pretty."_

_Edith is standing in the middle of one of the many open paths running through Wonderland Woods. The floor and trees are covered in a fine soft blanket of snow. Along the wide path, stand piles of snow shaped into snowmen, pillars, and statues of various sizes at random intervals. Hanging from the branches are icicles of the most bizarre arrangements. Some are the common needle-like icicles that can be found anywhere where it snows. Among them though, are icicles shaped into bells that tinkle softly in the occasional gust of wind. There are some that form lines of snowflakes that flap in the wind, but never break and hundreds of other forms hang along side them, ranging from the most beautiful to the most bizarre. _

_Arches, made of snow cross the open gap above Edith, each separated by a couple yards. Intricate designs adorn each arch giving the feeling that the passage of one is a journey into a new world in Wonderland. _

"_Edith!"_

_Edith turned around to see Ran running out of the forest toward her, waving a hand in the air. He was dressed the same as always, the only difference was that he was wearing black pants instead of shorts. Before he could reach Edith, a snowball flew out from the tree in front Ran hitting him in the face. Edith watched as he tripped and fall face first into the snow. Edith glanced up and saw Ches sitting in the tree above Ran, his tail swishing in amusement. As Ran picked himself off the ground, he glared daggers at Ches._

"_I kill you for that, you stupid cat!" he shouted._

_Ches chuckled. "No, you silly rabbit. That was to get your attention. This will be the reason you try to kill me."_

_Ches jumped off the branch he was on, shaking it in the process. Ran took a step after him before a large plop of snow landed on his head. As the realization dawned on Ran, he had barely enough time to look up and scream before he was buried by a mountain of snow. Edith let out a small gasp of surprise._

"_Don't worry. I'm sure he's fine."_

_Edith jumped in surprise. She turned around to find Ches standing behind her._

"_Look! He's climbing out, and no worse for wear." Ches said as he pointed._

_Edith turned around again to see Ran climbing out of the pile of snow. He managed to get his upper torso free before the layer of snow under him collapsed, causing him to fall under the snow again. Edith let out a stream of giggles as she ran over to help._

"_You're such a silly rabbit," said Edith, in between giggles as such stuck her hand out._

"_I am not," said Ran as he grabbed Edith's hand. "Thank you." Ran managed to take a step forward before his foot sunk to deep into the snow causing him to trip and fall, face first._

"_Some one must really love the snow!" Ches shouted through his laughter._

"_I'm going to kill that cat," mumbled Ran as he picked himself up._

"_Snowy."_

"_What did you say, Edith?" asked a puzzled Ran._

"_Snowy. The rabbit I found in our garden today. You keep reminding me of him. That's it! I'm going to call you Snowy from now on. It will be your new nickname."_

_Ran's expression fell. "Please don't compare me to other rabbits," he whined._

"_Someone seems to have a little inferiority complex," teased Ches as he appeared behind Ran._

"_I do not!" exclaimed Ran as he drew his sword._

"_I'll take that as a lie," said Ches as he ran into the woods with Ran following close behind._

"_Get back here you stupid cat!"_

_Edith sighed as they ran off. "There they go again. Oh no!" she exclaimed in realization. "We're going to be late if they don't stop," Edith exclaimed as she went after the two. "Get back here!"_

* * *

><p><strong>Present: <strong>

"Edith, do you mind letting me go? If we don't hurry, we'll be late."

"Alright," said Edith as she released him from his hug. "Wait, where are we going, cause it seems that everyone, but me knows our destination."

"I'm sorry, but I can not say," said Ran smiling, "But I will tell you that it will be well worth the wait."

"He's right, you know," said Ches, "You're just going to have to be patient."

"Fine," sighed Edith, "Can we get going then?"

"Sure thing," replied Ran. "Follow me and I will have us there within minutes."

Ran led, while Edith walked close behind with Vorpal and Ches following behind her. While they were walking, Edith could here Vorpal and Ches whispering behind her, but she paid it no mind. Her current focus was on Ran's white rabbit ears. She was constantly stealing glances while doing her best not to stare. Her face flushed a little as she reached out to grab his ear. Without even realizing it, she was holding the bottom of his left ear, rubbing it gently between her thumb and fore finger. Edith was so caught up in what she was doing that she did not notice the shiver that went up Ran's spine or heard the snickering from Vorpal and Ches.

"Um, Edith?"

"W-wha," replied Edith, as if she were in a daze, as she gazed up at Ran who had a light blush on his face.

"Can you let go of my ear, please?"

Edith's eyes widen in realization of what she was doing. Her hand shot back to her, as if she burned herself.

"I'm so sorry," said Edith as her hands flew up to her mouth, "I did mean too, it's just that your ears looked so soft and I…I'm so sorry."

Ran chuckled while Vorpal and Ches outright laughed behind her.

"It's alright," replied Ran in a cheerful tone. As they continued on, Edith heard Vorpal and Ches whispering again and managed to catch something one of them said.

"I told you, she was going to do it. She has a soft spot for animal ears."

Before Edith could turn around and say something, Ran spoke up.

"We're here."

In front of them was a white fence post that surrounded a large clearing. At the other side was a beautiful two-story house. In the center of the clearing was a long white table filled with what appeared to be teapots. Sitting at the end of the table were two figures.

"Shall we join them?" Vorpal asked as he opened the gate for Edith. Edith nodded and stepped through with the others following close behind. As they approached the table, the two figures, who were a man and a woman, rose from their seats and walked down the length of the table to meet them. The man walked, hunched over. Even hunched, he stood at an amazing six feet in height. He was wearing a ridiculously tall top hat, covered in numbers, fractions, and card symbols, all placed in a black and white checkered pattern. The hat was titled, so the brim would cast a shadow over most of his face, that the only thing visible was a single, glowing, red eye. His hair was messy and stuck out from under his hat. It was divided into two colors, black for the front half and snow white for the back half. He wore a dress jacket that was also two colors, white on the front and an olive green on the back. It covered a plain white undershirt with a ruffled ascot. His pants were simple blue slacks. He carried in his left hand a wooden cane, with a white stone handle with a white diamond implanted on the top.

The woman wore a matching top hat with a similar colored outfit. She wore a dress with a white upper half and olive green, lower half. The dress stopped at her knees, revealing green and white colored stockings. The dress' sleeves stopped at her elbows, above green gloves. Her hair was a light chestnut brown that fell to her shoulders. The color of her eyes matched the color her hair. She looked like she was probably in her thirties. She stood next to the man, who appeared to be only few inches taller than her, in front of the table. She smiled pleasantly as Edith and her group approached. The man lifted up his head, allowing them to see his face. He looked as if he was in his thirties as well. His eyes though, weren't red. They were two different colors. His left eye was green and his right blue. He was smiling just like the woman next to him.

"Well, well, well! Look what we have here," said the woman, "I didn't expect such a huge group would be joining us today."

"You have just made in time for tea, my friends," said the man, "And I find it wonderful that Edith is also joining us."

"It's good to see you, Hatter," said Ran cheerfully, "And it's good to see you too, Hattress."

"Edith, I do hope you remember the Hatters," said Vorpal as he rubbed the top of her head until she swatted his hand away.

"I do remember them a little bit, but not completely."

Hatter smiled, not worried in the least about her memories. "Remembering is much better than forgetting, isn't that right dear?"

"It is indeed, and at least you remember us partially, rather than not at all." Hattress grabbed Edith's hand and led her to a spot at the table. Vorpal took the seat next to her on her right, while Ran and Ches took seats across from her. The Hatters sat at one end of the table. As soon as Ran sat down, he began to glance around table looking for something, an act that did not go unnoticed by the Hatters.

"Is something the matter Ran?" Hattress asked.

"It's just that I don't see March or Mewnet anywhere. I rarely see them away from this place, so I'm wondering they could have gone," he replied.

"Mewnet should be somewhere on the table and March went hunting a while ago. He should be back any second now," answered Hatter as he poured tea into a group of teacups in front of him.

Edith looked at hatter confused with her head titled to the side. "How can a person hid on a table? They would be very easy to spot."

Vorpal shook his head as he wagged a finger in the air. "Ah, but Mewnet is not a person, she's a mouse."

"A mouse?" Now Edith was more confused. Before she could ask why the mouse was important, she notice something sticking out from behind one of the teapots on the table. Edith moved the teapot aside to find a brown mouse sleeping in a knocked over teacup. The lower half of the body was sticking out of the cup, lying on the table. Edith reached over and gently, picked up the mouse with her hand.

"I think I found your mouse," Edith said, gaining everyone's attention. The mouse awoke as Edith gently stroked its fur. The mouse stared at Edith with its small black eyes.

"It looks so cute…ow!" Edith cried as she dropped the mouse.

"What's wrong?" asked Vorpal, worry in his voice.

"It bit me," Edith said as she sucked the wound on her injured finger. She stared at the mouse that sat on the table looking at her. It was almost as if the mouse was glaring at her. After a few more seconds of their odd stare contest, the mouse turned and ran across the table toward the empty chair next to Ran. Edith watch as it jumped and morphed in mid-air. Where there was once a mouse, was now a little girl, about Edith's age, sitting in a crouch in the chair. She wore a short purple dress with a dark purple vest on top. She had short silver hair. What stood out the most was the silver mouse ears on the top of her head and tail that was swishing back and forth. She turned around to reveal dark, velvet red eyes that stared into Edith's green ones. Edith stared at the girl in surprise as she glared at her.

"Who are you?" she demanded.

"You should calm down, Mewnet," Hatter said as he mixed the cups of tea.

"But you know how I hate having strangers for tea time," complained Mewnet. Ran placed his hand on her head and turned it so she was looking at Edith.

"I'm not surprise you have forgotten what she looks like. You could never remember anything past a month," chuckled Vorpal, "This is Edith." Vorpal patted Edith's head earning him a glare while he looked at Mewnet's shocked face.

"Impossible," she whispered. "Edith forgot about us. She can't be here."

"Vorpal isn't lying," Ran said as he patted Mewnet's head. "You should apologize for biting her."

Mewnet's eyes widen in realization. "It is you! I'm so sorry!" Mewnet cried bowing her head.

"It's alright," Edith said while smiling at her. "But I have to ask, can everyone transform like that?"

Ches answered. "Not everyone. Only a select few have the ability and those select few, all have animal traits of some kind. Take Ran here for example; he can't transform as well as March, who has yet to show. I on the other hand posses the most advance, transformation ability. The only other person, or persons, that come close are the insane Twins."

"Insane Twins?" asked Edith.

"Just the nickname we use for those two, because they run the asylum," answered Vorpal, "Oh, before I can forget…"

Mewnet shrieked and ducked under the table as two table knifes impaled into her chair's headrest. Mewnet peeked above the table, her eyes wide in fright and the fur on her ears standing up.

"Hurt Edith again and I will be sure not to miss." said Vorpal smiling, his smile twisted and menacing and his words sincere.

"Vorpal, please don't kill the other party members. Show some restraint," said Hatter.

"You're one to talk, Mr. Butcher," Vorpal said tauntingly.

Hatter's head shot up as he glared at Vorpal, his eyes flashing a dangerous red. "I would prefer it if you would not use that name."

"Or you'll do what?"

Hatter rose from his chair, his backing cracking in the process as he stood to his full height, an intimating eight feet. His eyes glowing red and his upper face hidden by the shadow of his hat.

"I'll have to teach you some table manners, _Interrogator,"_ Hatter threatened, griping his cane in both hands.

Vorpal also rose from his seat, his hand on the hilt of his sword.

"In all of the time I have known you, this is the first time you have taken offense to that name. Why is that? Ashamed all of a sudden? Hm? I on the other hand love my name." Vorpal couldn't help, but egg the Hatter on.

"Vorpal, there are certain things that Edith would be better off not knowing, so still that tongue of yours, before I remove it." Hatter threatened, pointing his cane at Vorpal.

"Will you two stop it!" Both Hatter and Vorpal turned to see Hattress walking from the house with a large, plain looking cake in her hands. "The both of you are acting like children right now. If you're going to fight, do so after teatime. There is a time for everything and now is teatime. Am I not correct Mr. Whitman?"

Hattress set down the cake as she looked toward Ran. He pulled out his pocket watch, flipping open the lid to see the time.

"Right you are Hattress. It's tea time, right on the dot," Ran paused to look around, "And it seems that our other rabbit friend will be late."

"How unfortunate," said Hattress, as she began cutting slices from the cake.

"If I remember correctly, March is a hare, not a rabbit. Both are different," said Ches.

"Rabbit, Hare, I see no difference. We're all the same," replied Ran relaxing into his chair. He didn't see the mischievous glint in Chess's eye.

"So what you are saying is that you're not special at all. You're just another ordinary rabbit," Chess teased.

Ran's eyes shot open and a twisted smile appeared on his face. He reached forward and grabbed the handle of a metal teapot in front of him.

"Say that again and I will be happy to smash your head in with this metal teapot," Ran threatened in a sweet voice.

"Please gentlemen, reframe from killing each other. It's time for tea." In front of Hatter sat a dozen plates, sporting teacups and large slices of cake. With a snap of his fingers, all the plates sprouted legs and began to carry their contents to each person. Edith watched in amazement as two plates, one with cake and the other tea, walked to her. As soon as they were in front of Edith, they set themselves down, retracting their legs, leaving no evidence that they were ever there.

"That was amazing," said Edith in awe. Hatter smiled and raised is cup to her for a silent _glad you enjoyed it_. When Edith glanced down toward the cake, though, she was disappointed. It looked like an overly sized slice of bread. What confused her though, was that next to the fork was a large needle with a blue bulb on the end.

"Hattress? Why do I have a needle," Edith asked.

"To change the flavor. This is Wonder Bread my dear. You prick it with the needle and it changes to a different flavor. Whether it be chocolate, blueberry, apple, any assortment of flavors you can imagine." Hattress lifted her slice for Edith to see. It was no longer white, but red with a blue swirl in it.

"What if I want a specific flavor?"

"Then put the head of the needle in your mouth, think of the flavor you want then prick the cake and you will get that flavor. You can also add fillings and icing that way as well."

"The cake is delicious," butted in Mewnet, "It's wonderful as always and the tea is amazing. Nothing can taste better."

"Oh, I beg to differ."

Mewnet turned to see Ches fixing her with a hungry gaze. She picked up a table knife and pointed it at him, interrupting Ran as he tried to take a sip of tea.

"Don't even think about it," Mewnet threatened.

"When it comes to such matters, it's best to not waste time thinking about it," Chess purred. Ran glanced at both of them before scooting his chair back.

"Chess, would you not attempt to eat the other guests. It's rude and your being a bother to Ran," Hatter said, not even glancing in their direction. Ran nodded his thanks while Ches returned his focus to the cake in front of him. Edith, who had watched the whole event in amusement, shook her head before pricking her slice of cake. It turned into a bright blue color. When she took a bite, the rich taste of fresh blueberries filled her mouth. She loved it, but before she could take another bite, she heard a shout.

"Oi, I hope I'm not too late to join in!"

Edith looked behind her chair to see someone coming out of the trees. He looked to be about Vorpal's height and age. His hair was short and an orange color that matches his eyes. A scar ran down his left eye and a pair of brown rabbit ears that stood on the top of his head. The, ears though looked torn and injured as if they were mauled. He was wearing an open, red trench coat that had orange fur lining. There were a few noticeable patches and the bottom of the coat looked shredded at the edges. His brown trousers were in a similar state as his overcoat, patched and shredded at the bottom. .On his feet are a pair of brown, mud-caked combat boots. Strapped over the coat and the brown, bloodstained vest underneath, was a bullet belt with a dagger sticking out in the middle. Slung over his left shoulder were three dead foxes. Resting on his right, with the barrel facing the sky, was a bolt-action rifle.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't my favorite huntsman. Good to see you March," Vorpal said as he rose from his chair and embraced March in a hug.

"It's good to see you too, Vorpal," March said returning the embrace. March glanced over Vorpal's shoulder and could see Edith staring from around her chair. "And it seems you brought me a present."

"As yes, Edith I like you to meet March Hunter. The Huntsman of Wonderland's woods. I do hope you remember him some."

"All I remember is that there was a freeloading rabbit living with the Hatters," Edith said nonchalantly. Everyone burst into laughter while March looked at Edith in shock.

"How can you say such a cruel thing?" March cried.

"I'm just playing you, you silly rabbit," Edith said giggling. March immediately perked up.

"Come now March, Tea time as already started. I already served you a plate," Said Hatter gaining March's attention.

"I was wondering what that delightful smell was," March said as he took the left seat, next to Edith. He hung the fox hides on the back of his chair, their bodies dripping blood on grass.

"I didn't think you were going to show," Ran said, nibbling on his cake, "You're late enough as it is."

"Please, tea time started three and four color changes ago, I'm not that late," March said.

Edith looked that them both confused. "Three and four color changes? What does that even mean?"

"It means what it means," replied March and Ran simultaneously. They looked at each other before Ran nodded, giving March permission to continue. "I was gone for three and Wonderland's forest changed color four times in four different sections."

"Yes, but three what? Seconds, minutes, hours?" Edith felt even more confused than before.

"I would not bother with it, Edith," Vorpal said, cutting into the conversation. "It's the main way to tell time here in the forest. It can't be explained, only understood. You'll see what I mean if you stay in the forest long enough." Vorpal took a sip of his tea before he eyed the fox hides hanging from March's chair. "Those are some nice foxes you have caught."

"I have to agree, looks like your hunt has gone well," complemented Hattress.

March beamed. "You should see the state the live ones are in." March let out a sigh of longing. "I wish I could have butchered that Alpha of theirs too, but atlas, he did not show."

At the mention of butchering, Edith perked up and looked toward Hatter. "That reminds me. Hatter, why did Vorpal call you a butcher?"

Hatter practically choked on the tea he was drinking while everyone else stopped and focused on him.

"You never told her?" March asked surprised.

"We thought it would be better if she didn't find out," Hattress replied while sipping her tea. Vorpal smile smugly at Hatter, who was staring into his cup.

"She is going to find out one way or another. It's not like what happens here is any worse compared to the other places here in Wonderland, besides she is traveling with me. I sure that she can handle it." Vorpal sat eagerly waiting for Hatter's response.

Hatter stared into his teacup before letting out a tired sigh. "Very well, and since you seem so eager to, why don't you tell her."

Edith looked between the two of them confused. "What's going on?"

"It's simple; Hatter is afraid that you won't respond well to the reason he and his wife have earn the nickname Butcher." Vorpal replied nonchalantly.

"Why? What did do to earn such a name?" Edith asked, staring at the Hatters, who refuse to meet her gaze.

"The reason the Hatters are called the Butchers, is because they're Wonderland's top serial killers."

Edith's eyes widen in surprise. "They're what?" she asked shocked.

"They're serial killers," Vorpal replied, acting as if the manner was trivial. "If you look closely at that yellow Mansion of theirs, right behind that first line of trees to the left is a silver building. That silver building is a giant meat locker. Anyone who wanders into the Hatters' territory is dragged into that locker and hacked to pieces. Hell, sometimes they just grab random people from the scattered towns. In the end the result is the same; you'll never see them again."

Edith stared at Hatters, unable to believe what she had just heard. She opened her mouth, but no words would come out. Finally, after a few tries, she managed to get the words out.

"W-Why do you do it."

Neither Hatter would meet her gaze. After a few seconds, Hatter responded. "Because it's the way things are. It's what feels the most natural to us and it's how the cycle of life works here, only the strong survive."

When Edith heard the phrase _cycle of life, _something clicked in her mind. Suddenly all the fear she felt, disappeared. She felt _different. _

"Is that all you do?"

Everyone looked at Edith surprised. The fear had completely left her voice.

"What do you mean?" Hattress asked.

"I mean-" Edith raised head and stared into Hattress' eyes. Her eyes no longer held fear, but were filled with worry. "I mean is that all you do in that room. You don't make the tea in there, do you?"

Everybody, but Vorpal who was grinning triumphantly, looked at Edith in surprise.

"N-No," replied Hattress, "Blood could ruin the tea."

"Good, I was worried about that," replied Edith giving a sigh of relief. Everyone looked at Edith speechless. Soon they were chuckling, then it transformed into full-blown laughter, the tension in the air dissipating.

"How you never cease to amaze me," Vorpal chuckled as he patted Edith on the head.

Edith swatted his hand away. "I still have one last question for you, Vorpal."

Vorpal along with everyone else ceased their laughter. "Oh, and what would that be?"

"Why did Hatter call you Interrogator?"

"Because that is what he does," Hatter answered, cutting off Vorpal. "Your knight here is a psychopath who works as the interrogator and executioner at White Castle. He is man who takes delight in hurting others. No one has ever survived the torture he commits."

"I'm not surprise," Edith replied calmly, while taking a sip of her tea, "Spending a day with him is torture enough. I'm surprise I haven't died yet. I can't imagine what it would be like to be locked in a room with him for days. Now wonder no one survives."

Everyone was looking at Edith, speechless before they all broke into laughter. All, but Vorpal who was looking at Edith shocked.

"Now that was very mean. You hurt me," Vorpal said clutching his chest.

"I know your faking and besides that for earlier in the forest."

"I never thought you would be one to hold a grudge. It's not become for a princess like you." The last word barely had to time to leave Vorpal mouth before he was hit with a hot splash of tea. "Ow!" he cried. "What was that for?"

"For calling me a princess," Edith said while hold the empty cup in her hands.

Everyone else was in hysterics after watching the two. March was the first to calm down.

"You two make quite a pair," March said while holding his aching side. "I was wondering. Where do you plan on heading after this?"

"Where ever Edith chooses to go," Vorpal replied while cleaning his face. When he was done to looked to Edith. "So where would you like to head to next?"

"Where is there to go?" Edith asked.

"We have the coast where we will find Carpenter, Walrus, and the Siren. We have hearts castle which is home to the Executioner, the Queen of Hearts, the Jabberwocky, and Ran's sister or lover, the Black Rabbit."

Ran, who heard what Vorpal had said, spurted the tea he was drinking then proceeded to grab a teapot and toss it at Vorpal who caught it mid-air.

"I HATE THAT WOMAN!" Ran yelled, "Don't dare say that I love her," he threaten, his saber pointing across the table. "And we are not related in any way!"

"Calm down, I was only joking. No need to draw your sword." Vorpal sounded sincere, but the sincerity did not reach his mischievous eyes. Ran withdrew his sword and sat fuming in his seat. Soft giggles could be heard from Hattress and Mewnet. Edith couldn't help, but look at Ran curiously, but decided her questions could wait and returned her attention to Vorpal.

"Now where was I?" Vorpal asked himself, "Ah yes places in Wonderland. If I'm correct, the last place to see is the Wastelands. They are the most diverse place in Wonderland."

"Why is that," Edith asked.

"The Wastelands are broken into three sections," Hatter answered.

Hattress named the places off her fingers, "First is the Asylum which is run by the Twins. The second is the Carnival, which is owned by the Puppet Master and Jesta the Jester. The last place is the main body of the wastelands which has been nicknamed Dolls-land."

"Can you tell me what each place is like?" Edith asked.

Vorpal chuckled before shaking his head, "That would eliminate the point in visiting now, would it not?"

Edith sighed, grabbing another cup of tea off the table. She downed the whole cup while she was thinking about it, before she finally set it down.

"I know where I want to go first."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Cliffhanger. Yes I know, hate me for it. <strong>

**As you can see this was a very long chapter so please (and I'm begging you) Review and tell me what you think. Are there some things that are not clear to you, let me know so i can explain and probably fix. I love reading your reviews they giving drive to work on this. I promise the next chapter won't take too long to update. You can check my profile to see the progress on my stories.**

**Just a heads up this story is still in the prologue stage so Alice and her Wonderland will not be seen for a couple more chapters. So thank you for reading and please review.**

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><p><strong>Want to play a game: There are three locations that Vorpal has mention in this chapter Wonderland Coast, Hearts Castle, and Wonderland Wastelands. Where is Edith going to go first? If you guess correctly you will learn about another group of OC's that have yet to be mentioned and learn alittle about the background of the character's here. Feel free to play, put your guess in you review. What do you have to lose?<strong>

** ~~~~~Puppet Master**


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: Sorry about the late update. This should have been uploaded earlier, but for some reason it didn't. This chapter is a bit short. It was originally going to be longer, but I had problems while righting it. Hopefully I can get the second half up soon. Please enjoy this short chapter.**

**Also thanks to all those who have reviewed. Your the best.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 7: Examining of a Shattered Mind.<strong>

"I know where I want to go," Edith said as she set down her tea cup.

"Where?" Vorpal asked.

"The coast," Edith replied.

Vorpal paled, which did not go unnoticed by Edith.

"Is something wrong?" she asked puzzled.

"Oh, nothing. Nothing At all," Vorpal replied in haste.

Edith looked at Vorpal suspiciously, but dismissed it as Vorpal up to one of his antics.

"Vorpal, may I speak to you privately for a moment?" Hatter asked, gaining his attention.

"Sure, I see why not," he replied as he rose form his seat. He looked at everyone with a mischievous smile. "Feel free to do what you want. You may give me a reason to kill you, but please, don't do it for me by killing each other."

March and Ches were laughing, Mewnet looked horrified and the Hattress and Ran, were shaking their heads in disapproval.

Vorpal followed Hatter through his mansion into the large meat locker that extended the entire left wing of the house.

"We're less likely to be disturbed here," Hatter said as he sat on a crate near the door.

Vorpal took a quick glance around the room. The meat locker was gigantic. The floor was blood stained and there were dozens of meat hooks hanging off the ceiling on long chains. Many were currently bare, but a couple carried large slabs of meat. Some were obviously from animals, but as for the unrecognizable slabs; Vorpal had no doubt that they were the remains of the Hatter's victims.

In the center of the room were three, bloodstained, metal tables lined up in a row. On the center table was an oversized clever, lodged upright on the metal surface. Lying against the walls and scattered around the room were dozens of unmarked crates. Some were leaking blood through the wood boards, making it easy to guess what was inside. The room could almost pass as an oversized backroom of a butcher shop.

"You ever considered remodeling the room?" Vorpal asked. "Looks very messy in here."

"I don't see any point in it. We get by fine. Besides, there is only one way for a person to leave this room." Hatter tapped his cane on the box he was on, to emphasize his point. "Now let's get down to business. I want to talk to you about Edith."

Vorpal leaned back against the open door, "What about her?"

"I want to know what you are thinking, planning to show Edith the rest of Wonderland." The irritation was clear in Hatter's voice.

"Why? Are you worried? Nothing will happen, while she is with me." Vorpal stated confidently.

"That's not it. My problem is that I don't think it is a good idea to show Edith the rest of Wonderland. It's much too dangerous for her."

"Oh, you don't have to worry about that."

"And why not?" It was obvious that Hatter's irritation was growing with the passing second.

Vorpal sighed. "Hatter, what have you noticed wrong with Edith?"

The question took Hatter completely by surprise. It took him a moment to collect his thoughts. "Her memory is muddled," he began, "she doesn't remember any of us very well and she is accepting this new world much too easily. Even if she has temporally forgotten about things, seeing Wonderland should cause her to remember how everything was before. The fact that she brushed the fact that we and my wife kill for a living as if it were nothing, is what worries me the most."

Vorpal gave Hatter a sympathetic look. "To be honest, I expected the same thing. When I brought her here, we were standing on the balcony in the observation tower of White Castle. Edith said that Wonderland was different, but I could tell that she didn't know what was different. It made me realize what's wrong with her."

"And what would that be?" Hatter asked intrigued.

"Loss," Vorpal answered. "Sadness, despair, loneliness and unhappiness. All of these emotions have damaged Edith's mind. First she loses her mother, who she loved greatly. A year later her older sister dies, who she had become much closer to, to fill her mother's void. Shortly after, Alice runs away causing her father to spend many days out looking for her. Then on one of these days, he somehow gets killed. Do you see what the problem is?"

Hatter rubbed his chin in thought. "She has suffered a great loss, I understand that. She has changed a little from it, but it still doesn't explain her attitude to our world."

Vorpal sighed, shaking his head. "Don't you get it? To Edith her family was her whole world and it just shattered." Vorpal paused to let his words sink in. "Because of that she is trying to cling onto what she has left, and that is Wonderland. The reason that she hasn't seen the flaws with Wonderland is that subconsciously, she doesn't want to see them. She wants to believe that this world is the same as before and use it to escape her suffering." Vorpal started too paced around the room examining the metal tables. "What it comes down to is not whether Wonderland can convert to fit Edith, but if Edith can convert to fit Wonderland even if it has become her unhappy, happy place."

Hatter contemplated Vorpal's words. After a moment he spoke.

"So this is why you are so intent on showing Edith Wonderland. It's so she can accept it sooner than later."

Vorpal nodded.

"But what if she can't accept this world. What then?

Vorpal sighed. "I don't know. I won't lie and say the possibility isn't there, but I don't believe that it will happen. Just have a little faith in her. She'll pull through." Vorpal started for the door. "Come on. We've chatted long enough. No doubt everyone is thinking that we killed each other by now."

"Vorpal!" Vorpal paused mid-step through the doorway. "I hope you know that other than me and my wife, you are the first person to step into this room and leave alive. If anything happens to Edith I will rectify this. Understood?"

"Perfectly," Vorpal replied smiling. "Don't worry. I promise Edith is in safe hands."

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><p><strong>AN: This will hopefully help you understand Edith's reactions in the rest of the story. If next chapter goes how i want it, then expect a lot of bloodshed. <strong>

**Remember to leave a reveiw, leting me know how you like the story so far.**


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: I'm back and I hope you all had an amazing Christmas and New Years. This was suppose to be your Christmas present, but I got sick and wasn't able to finish this. Now after a long wait, I give you the next chapter in Shattered Looking Glass. **

**Short note: A kusarigama is a Japanese weapon that consist of a sickle on a chain with a weight on the end. **

**Edith: It's only fair to warn you that this chapter does get violent near the end.**

**Vorpal: Why ruin the surprise? Oh well. I'm sure you all will enjoy this chapter.**

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><p><strong>Ch8: An innocent face covered in bloodily fur.<strong>

Edith had to admit, she was enjoying herself immensely, more so, than she thought possible. Ches had been entertaining everyone with jokes and riddles. He was the only one who was not holding his side from laughter. Mewnet couldn't breathe because she was laughing so much.

"My, my Ches. I give you permission to kill everyone and you almost succeed in doing so. The poor things are unable to breathe."

Edith turned to see Vorpal and Hatter standing at the head of the table wearing amused expressions on their faces.

"Hatter, Vorpal, you're back! And both of you are still alive," Ran cried cheerfully.

"Damn it Vorpal, you just cost me a bet," March said jokingly. Vorpal smirked as he took a seat next to Mewnet and directly across from Edith.

"Hatter," Mewnet gasped, still unable to catch her breath, "Ches was…entertaining us…with…some…hilarious jokes."

"I can see that," Hatter said with a small smile, "you're still blue."

"Whaa?" Mewnet began feeling her face, forgetting that it is impossible to feel a change in skin tone. Edith giggled as she shook her head. She noticed a clear, reflective, plate lying next to teacup and got an idea.

"Here, use this," Edith said as she handed Mewnet the makeshift mirror. "It works much better than feeling for something you can't feel."

Mewnet thanked Edith while trying to hide her embarrassment. Mewnet poked her cheeks while she examined her face in the mirror looking for spots of blue.

"I'm not blue," she said in a low voice, more to herself than anyone else.

"You were a blueberry," March said, laughing.

"Stop teasing the poor thing," Hattress said, while trying to suppress a giggle. "Drink some tea dearie, that'll put some color in your cheeks."

"Looks as though some of her color is already back," Ches teased. Mewnet's cheeks flushed pink as she tried to hide her face.

"Don't worry Netty, we'll only be in your hair for a little while longer," Ran said.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Edith asked.

Ran pull out his pocket watch, flipping it open. "If we don't leave soon we'll miss Carpenter's show," Ran explained. "Carpenter lives on the coast and runs a theater. If we hurry, we can catch his next show."

"A show? That sounds wonderful," exclaimed Edith.

"Well then, we better get going. Anyone else want to join?" Vorpal asked.

"I do!" exclaimed Mewnet. "I just need one more cup of tea." Mewnet downed the tea in a single gulp and let out a satisfied sigh. Without warning Mewnet collapsed onto the table, her head hitting it with a soft thud. Edith looked at her shocked and worried, while Hatter glared at the four men around her.

"Alright, who did it?" Hatter demanded. The four in question just pointed at each other.

"Did what? What's wrong with Mewnet?" Edith asked worriedly.

"Nothing dearie," answered Hattress. "It's just that Mewnet is a lightweight."

"Lightweight?"

"She doesn't get bothered by the smell, but the smallest drop of alcohol is enough to knock her out."

"And one of these fine gentlemen switched her tea with one that contains alcohol," added Hatter.

"Wait, why would there be alcohol in the tea?" Edith asked.

"Hatter here can use just about anything to add flavor to his teas," Vorpal explained.

"I don't think Netty will be waking up anytime soon," Ran commented.

"Lets see then," said Ches. He leaned over and whispered into Mewnet's ear. He pulled away and stared at her for a moment. "If that doesn't wake her, then nothing will." Everyone stared at Ches confused.

"I take it that what ever you said to her is the reason she locked herself in her room for a week," Hatter said.

"I would never scared Mewnet into such a state," Ches said feigning innocence.

"Looks like we'll have to leave her," March commented as he finished his tea.

"No choice. Thank you for the tea. Come along Edith, we don't have time to spare," Vorpal said as he rose from his seat, followed by the others.

"Um, is it ok to leave her like this?" Edith asked referring to Mewnet who was now snoring softly.

"Don't worry, we'll take care of her," replied Hattress. "Now run along before the others leave you behind."

"Join us again for tea," Hatter said as he waved goodbye.

"I will." Edith waved back as she ran to catch up with the others.

**~~X~~**

As the group traveled through the forest, Edith became aware of how quiet it was. The only noise came from March's whistling. There was no chirping of birds or rustling of leaves, even the wind was absent. The silence felt ominous.

"Edith, I found something that I'm sure you'll like," Vorpal said. He was crouched in front a blue bush. From it, Vorpal pulled out a fluffy white rabbit. Edith squealed in delight and snatched the rabbit from Vorpal, hugging it to her chest. She did not see the expression of dismay on Ran's face. Vorpal smirked evilly as he moved to stand beside him.

"If only you could transform, then that could be you, but you can't so that rabbit is much better than you."

Ran hung his head while a gloomy atmosphere settled around him and repeatedly muttered "useless" to himself.

"Why don't you bring him along," March said, unknowingly adding to Ran's dismay.

"Feeling inferior to a pet rabbit? What are we going to do with you," Ches said appearing beside Ran. He shook his head and motioned for everyone to follow. March trailed behind as he stared into the forest. The leaves rustled.

'_And I thought this would be a dull trip," _he thought.

"Edith, make sure you don't wander off," warned Vorpal, who was also watching the rustling. Edith nodded, though it was obvious by the expression on her face that she was confused.

Once again, the five were surrounded by the same strange silence, but this time they didn't have March's whistling to keep it away. Suddenly the rabbit in Edith's arms began squirming, trying to get free. The moment Edith set it on the ground, it bolt into the forest.

"I wonder what got into him?" Edith asked aloud.

"Maybe he just had to get home," Ran said a little too happily.

Edith shook her head. _'He still gets jealous over other rabbits. Some things never change.'_

A small rustling came from the bushes next her gaining her attention. Edith saw an obscured face peering out at her. In a moment, it was gone. Forgetting about Vorpal's warning, Edith went into the forest after it. As she got deeper into the forest, rustling began to pick up all around her, but she could not see what was causing it. Suddenly she stepped into a large clearing. Across from her was a giant pile of boulders, stacked together like a small mountain. Edith walked into the center of the clearing looking around surprised.

"It's rare that we get visitors here."

Edith glanced up to see a child, who appeared barely younger than Ran, sitting on top of the miniature mountain. He was shirtless, exposing pale gray skin that matched his hair. On his head was a pair of black fox ears and there was a matching color tail, with a large grey strip, wagging behind him.

"Who are you?" Edith asked.

"I'm the Alpha of this pack," he responded. As if on cue, dozens of young children stepped out of the forest into the clearing around them. All of them appeared to be around Edith's age, only differing by a few years. They wore little to no clothing and had fox ears and tails that were all an identical orange color. They looked at Edith with soft smiles and kind eyes.

"Who are you people," Edith asked. Her face was flushed a light pink as she tried to avoid looking at some of the "less modest" children around her.

"People call us the Innodents," replied the Alpha.

"Innodents?"

"It's because people like to jokily refer to as the 'Innocent residents of the forest' so they eventually came up with the word Innodent for short."

"But what do you mean they joke when they call you that?"

The Alpha chuckled. "I would tell you that but I'm getting hungry and I don't what to play with my found any longer." The smile on his face became one of pure menace.

All around Edith, the expressions on the faces of the fox children turned into looks of hunger and cruelty. Their smiles revealed sharp teeth and their hands became claw like. Some on them morphed into oversized foxes of varying shades of orange, brandishing knife like teeth.

'_They look similar to the foxes that March hunted,' _Edith thought horrified as she realized how grave the danger around her had become. She watched as their eyes began to glow a bright yellow color, except for the Alpha, whose eyes glowed a deep crimson.

"Save me the heart. You can have the rest," the Alpha said with a cruel smile on his face. Edith back away from the Innodents as they moved toward her. The ones in fox form, growled and snapped at the air, their drool dripping on the ground. One of foxes moved ahead of the ground. As Edith was walking backward, her foot caught on a rock and she fell. The fox took that moment to pounce, jumping into the air. Edith closed her eyes and waited for the inevitable.

"Didn't I warn you not to wander off?"

Edith's eyes shot open. Vorpal was standing over Edith with his arm outstretch and hanging from it was the fox, trying to bite through his gauntlet. He was now wearing his armor instead of the white trench coat from before.

"This why I warned to not to go exploring," Vorpal said. With a single swift action, he decapitated the fox with his sword. The body hit the floor gushing blood from its open neck. The head still hung onto his arm until Vorpal shook it off. "This time listen to me and stay right there while I deal with these vermin." He turned and faced the pack of Innodents. One of the Innodents, still in child form, rushed at Vorpal, attempting to tackle him to the ground. He jumped at him, but Vorpal impaled the child on his sword while he was still in mid air. He then flung the child off his sword. The body hit the ground with a thud. Edith watched as something unexpected happened. The body morphed until it was no longer a child but a small fox that was identical to the ones that March had brought with him at the tea party. Vorpal moved towards a long hair girl who appeared terrified of him. She turned and ran into the tree line behind her. Suddenly there was a high pitch shriek, which was abruptly cut off.

A large purple tiger walked out of the trees. It had the throat of the girl clenched between its teeth. The tiger smiled around the victim in its mouth before biting down. With a sickening crunch, the girl's head was severed. The tiger then morphed, becoming Ches. On his scarf, the detail of a smiling grin now contained bloodstained teeth.

Ches reached up, pulled the scarf from around his neck, and in the process, unraveled his hair exposing the rest of his face. On his neck was a large scar that curved up to the bottom of his chin. He smiled revealing longer than average canines. As the scarf slipped from his shoulders, it morphed into a black chain kusarigama* with a spearhead at the end. Ches twirled it as eyed the other Innodents. Most had morphed into savage foxes, leaving only a few in child form. One of the children took a run at Ches. Before he could cross half the distance between them, a gunshot rung out. The child stumbled to a stop.

A red Flower blossomed on the left side of his face. He raised his hand to his face. Where his left eye should have been was a gaping black hole surrounded by blood. He stared at his bloody hand for a moment before teetering and collapsing on the ground. Edith turned around to see March step out of the trees behind her holding his rifle in his hands. He walked past her to stand next to Vorpal and was soon joined by Ches. The three stood guard in front of Edith as the Innodents formed a half circle around them.

"You didn't even wait for me before you started killing them. How rude," March commented as place his dagger-bayonet on the end of his rifle. Before Vorpal could reply, the Alpha let out a loud growl.

"Killed them!" he snarled. "Kill them all. Leave nothing of their remains behind." At his words, the Innodents charged the three. The resulting battle quickly turned into a bloodbath as the Innodents were slaughtered like lambs.

Ches swung his Kusarigama in a wide arc, the spear morphing into a small scythe. The scythe cut two children in half before impaling into the skull of a fox. With a sharp tug, Ches yanked it free. The scythe morphed into what looked like a small rake with three spread claws instead of prongs. Ches ducked as a fox jumped for his head. He slashed its belly, as it flew over his head, cutting it open. It collapsed on the ground behind him as its innards spilled out of the gashes on its belly. The fox squirmed and cried out as it slowly bled to death. Ches ignored it as he picked his next target.

March was firing bullet after bullet in the mass of bodies that was rushing him. Corpses riddled with holes formed a red path in his direction as each fox and child was cut down. Those who managed to get close to him were impaled by his bayonet. Its once silver blade gleamed crimson.

As great, as the carnage was surround the two, it paled in comparison to what surrounded Vorpal. He was practically standing on a dismembered pile of corpses. Severed limbs and heads littered the ground around him. He ripped apart any who challenged him. His white armor was turning scarlet. Bloodstains dressed his face and hair. Through it all, Vorpal was enjoying himself. His eyes had turned completely silver and his smile never left his face.

As the three were finishing off the last of the Innodents, Edith noticed that something was happening to the Alpha. His body was increasing in size and black fur sprouted along his body. The Alpha had transformed. Instead of looking like a giant fox, the Alpha looked more like a giant black werewolf with a grey streak running down his back. It roared and lunged from the boulders at March.

Edith shouted in warning. "MARCH!"

March dodged out of the way. As soon as he got to his feet, the Alpha swung a large, clawed paw at him. He brought is rifle up in time to block the worst of it, but it still sent him flying. He hit the ground hard. As March got back to his feet, he winced.

'_That blow must have broken at least two of my ribs,'_ March thought. He saw the Alpha getting ready to charge. March smirked. "There is only one master hunter in this forest and that's me," he declared as he sighted his rifle. The Alpha roared, accepting his challenge, and charged. March fired a few rounds into the Alpha's bulk, but he moved unhindered. The Alpha lunged at March, who dropped onto his back and stuck his bayonet up. March reflexively closed his eyes when the Alpha's bulk crashed onto of him.

When he opened his eyes, he saw the Alpha's claws hanging inches from his face. The bayonet impaled the Alpha under the jaw, into his skull. March's ribs screamed in pain from the tremendous weight that was forcing his rifle into his ribs, squeezing them. March heard a deep gasping sound from above him. The Alpha was still alive. March rested his finger on the rifles trigger as he watch the Alpha desperately try to reach past the few inches away March and kill him.

"You're stubborn one," March said smiling. He pulled the trigger and blew the Alpha's brains out the back of his skull. Like a light being extinguished, the Alpha's eyes turn white, his body went slack and the grey strip on his back disappeared. Unlike the other Innodents, his body remained the same. March tossed the body to the side of him, letting out a sigh of relief. He got up and looked down at the fallen Alpha with a triumphant smirk on his face.

"That was for my ears," he stated. He turned around and joined Vorpal and Ches who were standing by Edith. Ches gave March a smile of approval before he begun rewrapping his hair and scarf around his neck.

"Are you sure you're not hurt," Vorpal asked.

"For the last time, I'm fine," Edith replied. "I'm more worried about March."

"I'm fine," March said waving off Edith's worried look. "I do have to say that this day has turned unexpectedly fruitful. I can get a lot for these hides…most of them that is."

Vorpal chuckled, knowing that March was talking about how he dismembered everything that got in his way. Edith suddenly noticed that they were missing someone.

"Where's Ran?"

A voiced piped up behind her. "Right here."

Ran stepped out from the trees behind her with his out and in his hand. "Really? There are three of you and couldn't even do this right."

"What are you talking about?" Edith asked. It was only after she asked the question did she notice that Ran's saber was covered in blood.

"I was taking care of the strays that tried running away."

"Really, cause you missed one," March commented. A fox jumped out of the trees at Ran. In a blur of motion, Ran spun and diced the Fox while it was still in mid-air. The body splattered on the ground behind him. He did not get a single drop of blood on him.

"Unlike you three, I don't make a mess of myself," Ran said while cleaning his blade with a handkerchief. When he was done, he pulled out his pocket watch. "Looks like we may not make it in time for the show."

"Then we should get going. You coming with us March?" Vorpal asked.

"Sorry, but no," March replied. "I don't want to risk losing these hides to some other hunter or critter."

"Then this is bye. We'll see you when we get back from our tour." Edith let a small shriek of surprise as Vorpal scooped her up into his arms. "To insure you don't wander off again." Ches and Ran snickered while Edith pouted, crossing her arms.

"I'll see you guys later," March said, waving good-bye.

"Bye March. Take care," Edith shouted, waving over Vorpal's shoulder. March chuckled.

'_She just brushed off this bloodbath as if it didn't happen. Hehe, guess she is losing her mind.'_ March unhooked his bayonet, beginning what was going to be a long process of skinning hides.

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><p><strong>AN: And there you have it. Chapter 8.<strong>

**Edith: Told you it was going to be violent.**

**SDW: Don't worry, next chapter won't be as violent.**

**Vorpal: Pity**

**SDW: Please leave me a review. I take so long to update my stories, that I sometimes wonder if people are still reading. It also doesn't help that this will be a looong story. We are still in the prologue so Alice won't show for a couple more chapters. 6-8 chapters then things get kicked off. So bear with me till then.**


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